“Tomas Vokoun said today he never intended on playing more than one season in DC”

Vokoun took a huge pay cut from his 2010-11 salary to the $1.5 million he made this season in attempt to chase a Stanley Cup. That obviously didn’t work out for him or the Capitals, but with most of the best potentially available goalies carrying caveats (such as being restricted free agents), Vokoun theoretically is still a desirable target.

Rumors are floating around from Russian Machine Never Breaks through Czech site iSport.cz that Vokoun is in talks with what will be a reconstructed Lokomotiv Yaroslavl team. Nick Kypreos reports Vokoun hasn’t agreed to a deal with Lokomotiv just yet and that “his first choice is to stay in the NHL.”

With the KHL’s provision that each team has the option of adding one returning NHL player who won’t count against the salary cap, it’s quite possible that a KHL team such as Lokomotiv might give Vokoun a more lucrative contract. Vokoun might also want to honor fellow Czech countrymen Josef Vasicek (a good friend of Vokoun’s), Jan Marek and Karel Rachunek who were on that team.

At the same time, he might feel like there’s still some unfinished business after a disappointing 2011-12 season and he should have a nice chunk of NHL suitors. He’d make a lot of sense for the Tampa Bay Lightning, Columbus Blue Jackets and any number of teams who would rather not give up assets to acquire a less-proven young backup such as Jonathan Bernier.

Either way, Vokoun will join Semin and possibly quite a few others who are exiting DC.

For any caps fan if this came as a surprise then you’re really out of the loop. Holtby should and most likely start while neuvy will provide the backup role.

wethog66 - May 14, 2012 at 8:11 PM

Good riddance. GMGM should of never signed his crippled ass.

cspsrbums - May 14, 2012 at 8:22 PM

Sounds like pht knows Semin is not coming back to DC I doubt that since Kuz isn’t coming from Russia Semin will be around again if not hell be back in the KHL also. Caps will make a big mistake to let him walk if he does go to another NHL team which I doubt he’ll come back to haunt you. T still believe he is the best player behind Backstrom the Caps have

With so much players leaving the Caps, hopefully we can get fresh young talent like Suter and some others with a couple first round picks in the offseason. Would’ve been nice if Kuznetsov came here during the season though.

lordfletcher - May 15, 2012 at 12:16 AM

Suter doesn’t want a part of the mess called “Washington”…. Not making fun, just trying to keep it real.

Suter has two strong possible destinations right now, Wings and Wild.

Wings because, well, they’re the Wings

Wild, family from here and W (not far), max contract, up and coming team, can compete if healthy and they land Suter or Parise. Not saying they will but they have an outside chance

The whole reason they traded Nick Schultz at the deadline for Tom Gilbert.

It makes sense because they both have similar salaries. At the time every shook their heads trying to figure out why that trade was made. You dig deeper and realize Gilbert played youth hockey with Parise and Gilbert played with Suter at Wisconsin. You have to assume he along with Heatley (another Wisconsin alum) along with Koivu will be trying to sell the future hard in Minnesota. They have all their eggs in both of these baskets. They will try to land one if not both.

Because I really care what you guys think of me! You can call me “Klassless” all you want. The fact of the matter that Hockey Players would even consider playing for a League that does not even ensure that their travel safety does not even meet the saftey requirements as an Harlem Bus Depot, is shocking itself! You can tag along in the NHL, making 1.5-2 Million Dollars, and be on a five year old airplane that meets the utmost safety standards of the TSA, and feel absolutely safe… Or… You can go to Russia, fly around in a 30 Year Old Plane in -14 Degree Weather with 40MPH Wind, and risk your life while you make a few extra rubles… Umm… I chose option A.?.. And by the way, I donated $100 Dollars to the Caps Wives Club on their Loko Drive in mid October at the Phone Booth…. Whether or not Karie Erskine gave the money to the team, I have no idea…. So, make what you want out of it, I’m just channeling my inner John Madden and stating the obvious! USA/Canada > Russia

The KHL is paying players comperable salaries to NHL players. Why wouldn’t Russians want to go back to their native country and play where the majority of their lives were? It doesn’t matter whether players are flown on a personal team owned jet, first class air, a motor coach, or the original plane the Wright brothers used. It doesn’t matter as long as they are making their paychecks every other Friday. This was a tragedy that hopefully everyone learned from, hopefully. I am disgraced that I am even replying to one of your posts. Your one of the many shameless, faceless a-holes who are too chicken to put a name on something as classless as you posted.

PHT needs to go back to their post they had a few months ago about banning idiots who post worthless junk like you have all over this post.